Fighting between Kurdish rebels and Islamist militants is said to be intensifying in the strategic Syrian town of Kobani.
Iraqi Peshmerga forces have now crossed the border to help fellow Kurds in defending the besieged town.
Their arrival marks the first time Turkey has allowed ground troops from outside Syria to reinforce Syrian Kurds, who’ve been defending Kobani for more than 40 days.
The Peshmerga were given a heroes’ welcome as their convoy of jeeps and flatbed trucks crossed Turkey’s mainly Kurdish southeast this week, making their way towards Kobani from their base in northern Iraq’s Kurdistan region.
It’s unclear whether the small but heavily-armed contingent will be enough to swing the battle but the deployment is a potent display of unity between Kurdish groups that often seek to undermine each other.
